Neanderthals in the Levant

Neanderthals in the Levant
Author: Donald O. Henry
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 337
Release: 2003-10-01
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1441167196

The volume traces the controversy that revolves around the bio-cultural relationships of Archaic (Neanderthal) and Modern humans at global and regional, Levantine scales. The focus of the book is on understanding the degree to which the behavioral organization of Archaic groups differed from Moderns. To this end, a case study is presented for a 44-70,000 year old, Middle Paleolithic occupation of a Jordanian rockshelter. The research, centering on the spatial analysis of artifacts, hearths and related data, reveals how the Archaic occupants of the shelter structured their activities and placed certain conceptual labels on different parts of the site. The structure of Tor Faraj is compared to site structures defined for modern foragers, in both ethnographic and archaeological contexts, to measure any differences in behavioral organization. The comparisons show very similar structures for Tor Faraj and its modern cohorts. The implications of this finding challenge prevailing views in the emergence of modern human controversy in which Archaic groups are thought to have had inferior cognition and less complex behavioral-social organization than modern foragers. And, it is generally thought that such behaviors only emerged after the appearance of the Upper Paleolithic, dated some 10-20,000 years later than the occupation of Tor Faraj.

Prehistoric Cultural Ecology and Evolution

Prehistoric Cultural Ecology and Evolution
Author: Donald O. Henry
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 533
Release: 2013-03-09
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1475723970

Offering the most comprehensive study of southern Jordan, this illuminating account presents detailed data from over a hundred archaeological sites stretching from the Lower Paleotlithic to the Chalcolithic periods. The author uses archaeological and paleoenvironmental evidence to reconstruct synchronic and evolutionary aspects of the cultural ecology of the prehistoric inhabitants of southern Jordan. This study exemplifies that cultural historic and processual approaches are integral to examining prehistoric cultural ecology. Numerous artifact illustrations as well as tables and appendixes containing primary data are included.

Before Lascaux Complex Record of the Early Upper Paleolithic

Before Lascaux Complex Record of the Early Upper Paleolithic
Author: Heidi Knecht
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 328
Release: 1993-02-03
Genre: Art
ISBN:

Examines the nature of the Early Upper Palaeolithic and presents results of new methods, techniques and approaches applied to the investigation of old problems concerning old world Palaeolithic archaeology. Topics in art, technology and subsistence are covered.

Neandertals and Modern Humans in Western Asia

Neandertals and Modern Humans in Western Asia
Author: Takeru Akazawa
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 529
Release: 2005-12-27
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0306471531

In this fascinating volume, the Middle Paleolithic archaeology of the Middle East is brought to the current debate on the origins of modern humans. These collected papers gather the most up-to-date archaeological discoveries of Western Asia - a region that is often overshadowed by African or European findings - but the only region in the world where both Neandertal and early modern human fossils have been found. The collection includes reports on such well known cave sites as Kebara, Hayonim, and Qafzeh, among others. The information and interpretations available here are a must for any serious researcher or student of anthropology or human evolution.

The Archaeology of Jordan and Beyond

The Archaeology of Jordan and Beyond
Author: Lawrence E. Stager
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 545
Release: 2018-07-17
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9004369805

James A. Sauer was for many years the Director of the American Center of Oriental Research in Amman, Jordan, leading it to the preeminent place it now occupies as a research institution dedicated to the archaeology and history of Transjordan. This volume honors him, with more than 50 contributions from colleagues and friends. With this volume, the Harvard Semitic Museum inaugurates a new series entitled "Studies in the Archaeology and History of the Levant."

Updating Neanderthals

Updating Neanderthals
Author: Francesca Romagnoli
Publisher: Academic Press
Total Pages: 384
Release: 2022-06-28
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 0128214295

Updating Neanderthals: Understanding Behavioral Complexity in the Late Middle Paleolithic provides comprehensive knowledge on Neanderthals who lived throughout the European and Asian continents. The book synthesizes historical information about the study of Middle Paleolithic populations and presents current debates about their genetics, subsistence, technology, social and cognitive behaviors. It focuses on the last phase of Neanderthal settlements and presents the main patterns of modern humans across Europe. Written by international experts on the Middle Paleolithic who have conducted innovative studies in the last three decades, this book explores the implications of interactions between different human species, including Neanderthals, Denisovans and Sapiens. In addition, the book discusses the diversity and variability of human adaptations and behaviors in the changing climate and environment of the Late Pleistocene, and the relationship between these behaviors, demography and cognitive capabilities. - Offers a comprehensive update on the variability and diversity of Neanderthal behaviors during the Late Pleistocene - Presents an interdisciplinary reconstruction of Neanderthals by assessing archaeology, paleontology, paleoecology, anthropology, genetics and cognition - Reviews the reliability of archaeological data and the theoretical and methodological advances of the last 30 years - Discusses the most debated Neanderthal themes, such as demography, diet, socio-economy and art

The Prehistoric Archaeology of Jordan

The Prehistoric Archaeology of Jordan
Author: Donald O. Henry
Publisher: BAR International Series
Total Pages: 230
Release: 1998
Genre: History
ISBN:

Thirteen papers providing a comprehensive review of Jordanian prehistory, from the Lower Paleolithic to the Late Neolithic. Many come from recently completed research projects, prior to their final publication: The Lower Paleolithic ( Corraine Copeland ); The Middle Paleolithic ( Donald O. Henry ); The Early and Middle Epipaleolithic ( Brian F.